by: AIA New York
On December 8, AIA National announced the recipients of their 2021 AIA Honor Awards. Through their more than 30 Honors and Awards, the Institute celebrates design excellence in buildings and spaces, as well as the people behind them, recognizing members in the diverse practice of the profession. This year, two AIA New York leaders were recognized with special honors: Pascale Sablan, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP, Member of the AIANY Board of Directors and recipient of the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award; and Anthony Schirripa, FAIA, 2010 President of AIANY and recipient of the Edward C. Kemper Award.
2021 Whitney M. Young Jr. Award: Pascale Sablan, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP
Established in 1972 in honor of civil rights leader Whitney M. Young Jr., the award spotlights an architect who, according to the Institute, “embodies social responsibility and actively addresses a relevant issues, such as affordable housing, inclusiveness, or universal access.” Recipients of the award are automatically elevated to the AIA College of Fellows.
A senior associate at S9 Architecture, architect and activist Pascale Sablan is the 315th Black woman to attain licensure in the US. She has dedicated her career to elevating issues of diversity, inclusion, and equity in the profession. Sablan is the founder and executive director of Beyond the Built Environment, an organization that advocates for an equitable built environment by highlighting diversity in design disciplines. Beyond the Built Environment’s SAY IT LOUD initiative has led to the development of numerous in-person and virtual exhibitions spotlighting the achievements of diverse design professionals. The first edition of SAY IT LOUD, focusing on NYC-based architects, was exhibited at the Center for Architecture in the spring of 2017.
Beyond serving on the Board of Directors of AIA New York, Sablan also serves as Northeast Regional Vice President and Historian of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA). She also served as president of nycobaNOMA from 2015 to 2016.
Sablan earned a B.Arch. from Pratt University and an M.S. in advanced architectural design from the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. Before joining S9 Architecture in 2017, she worked at FXCollaborative and Aarris Architects.
2021 Edward C. Kemper Award: Anthony Schirripa, FAIA
The Edward C. Kemper Award, named after AIA’s first executive director, recognizes architects who have made contributions to the profession through their work with AIA.
Anthony Schirripa has held numerous leadership roles at AIA, both at the local and national levels. Schirripa served as the 2010 President of AIA New York and as New York Regional Director for the AIA Board of Directors from 2012 to 2014. He also served as Director-at-Large of the AIA Board of Directors in 2016. Schirripa was instrumental to the founding of the Center for Architecture, contributed to mentoring and professional development that led to chapter growth, and has been a leader in the ArchiPAC fundraising efforts, helping to expand AIA’s advocacy role
Schirripa graduated from Texas A&M University in 1973 with degrees in building construction and environmental design. He began working at Gensler as a project architect in 1980, and soon became a firm principal and later vice president of the firm in 1985. In 1995, he joined Mancini Duffy, becoming CEO in 2000, and later CEO and co-chairman in 2006.